Particle.news
Download on the App Store
50 ARTICLES
·
5d ago

Orionid Meteor Shower Peaks Under New Moon Tonight

Dark, moonless skies favor sightings of 10–20 fast meteors an hour from Halley’s Comet debris, with possible views of Comet Lemmon, Comet SWAN or northern aurora in some areas.

Review of the Decade. REVIEW OF THE DECADE File photo dated 22/10/18 of a plane and a satellite passing by a man stargazing at Brimham Rocks in Yorkshire as the Orionid meteor shower reached its peak. Issue date: Sunday December 15, 2019. See PA story XMAS Decade. Photo credit should read: Danny Lawson/PA Wire URN:49037619 (Press Association via AP Images)
Image
Image

Overview

  • The shower reaches its maximum on the nights of Oct. 21–22, with the best viewing from after midnight to pre-dawn local time.
  • Observers should find a dark location, avoid bright lights, allow 20–30 minutes for eyes to adjust, and watch with the naked eye rather than through a telescope.
  • Orionid meteors are extremely fast at about 41 miles per second and often leave glowing trains, with occasional bright fireballs reported.
  • Meteors appear to radiate from the constellation Orion (near Betelgeuse) but can streak across any part of the sky, and the display remains active into early November.
  • Two comets—Lemmon and SWAN—are near close approach this week and could be visible, and NOAA notes elevated aurora potential for some northern locations depending on geomagnetic activity.